Silk River has been an epic undertaking and we're looking forward to the many legacy projects that are beginning to take shape. Here is the end of project report, which contains an outline of some of the exciting things that happened and the impact of the project.

Prabhat Khabar is a Hindi language newspaper published daily in Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal. This article shows the British High Commissioner Sir Dominic Asquith attending the Silk River closing ceremony on 16th Dec.

Bengal, England Tied by Rivers. Calcutta: A project that recorded the stories of 20 communities living along the Hooghly in Bengal and the Thames in the UK saw its finale at the Victoria Memorial on Saturday.

Kolkata Dec 16th British High Commissioner to India Dominic Asquith today said the 'Silk River Journey' commemorated the Year of Culture between UK and India and created curiosity about the two rivers.

Ask any British person where in the world they would like to go, at least once in their life, and I’ll bet that a visit to India would be at the top of the list. And if there was one experience that such potential visitors would specify, it would be a journey on Indian railways.

Dawn eases the world into view from the boat. We are anchored off Chandannagar where today there will be a parade. It’s the best yet. We walk down The Strand with drummers and a team of acrobats on stilts wearing peacock feather headdresses.

During the night, when we are chugging downriver from Krishnanagar, there is torrential rain. Visibility at dawn is not much better. It’s what the Scots call dreich: thicker than mist, but not quite rain. In the wheelhouse, our pilot Nimai, is working hard to steer around the sandbanks, many of them invisible to ordinary mortals. But he sees them.

I like a town with a speciality. Nuremberg is wooden toys, York is chocolate, Buenas Aires is tango and London is second-rate politicians – no, hang on, every capital city seems to specialise in those.

Just before dawn we are on the riverbank about to be ferried out to our boat which floats offshore in the pearly mist. The sky and the river are same shade of grey. For once the world is hushed and almost silent.

One wonderful thing that happens when you travel through a landscape with something of a purpose is the chance encounters, the unexpected conversations that suddenly open up unseen worlds. Like with Darshan last night in Azimganj when he let slip about the elephant.

When I tell people in England that I’m going to India, they always seem to say something like: ‘You must love it.’ And after a pause: ‘When were you last there?’ Their implication, I reckon, is that India is changing fast and the India I knew may no longer be around.

A Celebration of Rivers. We're delighted that a wonderful article has been published about Silk River in the Telegraph (India) today. This article was written by Bruce Bucknell, the British deputy high commissioner in Kolkata.

Here is a beautiful new film by Mandakini Menon who captured footage from the UK section of the Silk River walk. This will give you a small taste of what to expect on the Indian walk 6-16th Dec, truly a journey of surprises!

Join us for an an immersive weekend experience soaking in the heritage and the magic of the Hooghly River, as the Silk River scrolls whisper their stories and secrets! Indian artists are invited to this exchange with 15 visiting artists from the UK.

Thursday 16 November 2017 5.30pm - 8.30pm. ‘A’ Team Arts presents Silk River Forever Hoorah! Silk River Forever Hoorah! is adapted for the stage and devised as part of the Silk River performance walk by the House of Talent youth. This production follows the changing migration, trade and social landscape of Tower Hamlets through song, drama, spoken word and declamatory storytelling.

Last Sunday, 15th Oct, colourful banners from Purfleet, Tilbury and East Tilbury, along with all the other Silk River scrolls, took a leading role in the Mayor of London’s annual Diwali celebration in Trafalgar Square

Silk River finale comes to Dartford!
Last Wednesday, 20th September, DAN members joined What If Gallery, Dartford Borough Council, Kinetika, and other Silk River participants on the Dartford leg of the Silk River journey.

All ten of the Silk River UK walks are now complete! What an amazing journey - 138 miles by boot and by boat from Kew all the way to Southend on Sea. We would like to extend a heart felt thank you to all the partners, performers, artists, walk leaders, link walkers, schools, teachers, boat owners and participants who made it such an outstanding success.

As part of this year’s Totally Thames festival, on Fri and Sat last week Tilbury and East Tilbury celebrated the UK’s rich cultural relationship with India by hosting Silk River, a spectacular 10 day art walk.

In 10 days time we will begin our last day carrying all 20 scrolls through this thousand-year-old community of fishermen. We will meet local artists and see Metal’s digital exhibition on ipads as well as be treated to a performance from the Mudlarks Choir, amongst other surprises.

Oh my goodness, it's day 9 of our 10 day count down! Well what a treat we have for you today! The Bata Heritage Centre are leading the walk to give you real insight into the buildings and local history, and very generously they have agreed to provide real props for the performance.

As part of Totally Thames, Kinetika present a Silk River film screening looking at how this ambitious project has explored the unique relationship between London and Kolkata through artistic exchange between communities along the Thames Estuary and India's Hooghly River. The screening will be followed by a question and answers session with some of the project's key partners.

On the 21st Sept we are in 'Gateway to the world', otherwise known as Tilbury! It is still a very busy port and we will hear stories of how it used to be before the age of shipping containers, when tea arrived from India in chests, cargo was unloaded in wheelbarrows and rum came in barrels.

All twenty of the hand painted Silk River Scrolls were finally revealed together at the Totally Thames launch party on 30th Aug. It was the first time that they had all been seen together. Representatives from all ten UK Silk River partners were there to see them, and we were delighted to have been invited to be part of this event produced by Totally Thames.

We are very excited to announce that the Silk River Indian Walks are now open for enquiries and booking! Participate in a unique 12-day International Residency that has been created especially for the Silk River project.

A unique journey down the river Hooghly from Murshidabad to Kolkata.
Join a group of contemporary artists, historians, writers and musicians from UK and India for the Silk River India Walk, where you will engage with the local artisans and community members along the way, participate in curated events comprising of talks, workshops and film screenings, share practice, create an artistic response, either individually or collectively.

Coinciding with the Isle of Wight Walking Festival & Richard Long’s exhibition, Ali Pretty will be speaking about 'Silk River', this major international walking project that connects the Thames and the Indian river Hooghly.